Dangerous Paths
by Copper's Mama
Summary: Hermione wonders at the possibly of a relationship between a Gryffindor and a Slytherin. Ginny/Draco, and Hermione/Snape centered, so don't read if you don't like the pairing, though I try to make pairings like that seem realistic.
1. Chapter 1

Hermione followed Ginny out of the common room, without her knowledge

_Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, but I wish I did. _

Hermione followed Ginny out of the common room, without her knowledge.

Ginny had been sneaking off at night for the last two weeks, and Hermione was dying to know why. She had asked Harry to borrow his Invisibility Cloak, telling him that she had some last minute homework to do in the library.

As quiet as she could, Hermione followed as close as she could. Where could she possibly be going?

Ginny walked into a classroom, and Hermione barely had time to sneak past her before she closed the door. What is she doing in a classroom in the

middle of the night?

The answer to her question came strutting through the door behind them.

Oh, my, God. No way.

Ginny turned around to greet Draco Malfoy. "Hello, lover."

Draco smiled, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. "Good evening, Miss Weasley."

Draco started kissing her, and Hermione couldn't stand there any longer.

She whipped off the invisibility cloak. "This is what you've been doing every night!?"

Ginny and Draco whipped around, parting briefly only to clasp one another's hand. Hermione was bewildered. Ginny and Draco? A Gryffindor with a Slytherin? A Weasley with a Malfoy?

"Hermione? What are you doing here?" Ginny asked meekly.

"You've been sneaking out after hours for two weeks! I was worried about you!" she exclaimed.

"Well, as you can see, she's perfectly alright, so if you don't mind…" Draco began.

"Don't speak!" Hermione said. She turned to Ginny. "How long?"

Ginny looked at the man beside her. "Almost a month."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Hermione asked.

Ginny looked at her best friend. "I knew you wouldn't understand. You're upset even now."

Hermione looked at both of them, at their intertwined hands. "I'm just upset because I had to find out this way."

Draco stepped forward, looking Hermione in the eye. "I know you can't ever really be comfortable with the idea of Ginny and I. And I know you don't trust me…but believe me when I say I've changed. I love Ginny, and that's that."

Ginny now stepped forward. "Love?"

Draco turned towards her. "Yes, Ginny. I love you. I've loved you for so long, I don't even know how long."

Hermione watched Ginny wrap her arms around her boyfriend. Before they could start up another full-on make out, Hermione interrupted.

"Um…excuse me? Do you think you could wait until I leave?" she asked.

"If you hurry," Ginny said, not looking away from Draco.

Hermione would have said get a room, but instead she left the classroom, and rushed back to Gryffindor common room.

………………………………………………………………………………………

The next day in Potions, Hermione could barely focus. She had thought for sure that Ginny liked Harry. And she had thought that Harry had returned those feelings, but when she asked him about it that morning, he said the she was like a sister to him, like Hermione herself was.

She couldn't get over the fact the a Slytherin, Malfoy of all people, was in love with a Gryffindor. She knew she shouldn't think of it that way, After all, Hufflepuffs dated Ravenclaws, Ravenclaws dated Gryffindors, just because there was a lot of bad blood between Gryffindor and Slytherin, didn't mean that there weren't some people who could see past that.

And that was the main reason why she couldn't take her eyes off of Professor Snape. Age had never really mattered to her. In her opinion, some things just got better with age. And while he was a teacher and she was a student - and that, in her opinion, was wrong - she couldn't help feeling attracted to him.

She wanted to talk to someone about it, but she was at a loss for who. She couldn't talk to Harry and Ron, they would have her committed, she couldn't talk to Dumbledore, he would scold her, or worse, Snape. She thought she might be able to talk to Ginny about it, with her also dating a Slytherin man, but she would have to be careful not to be overheard. For her sake, as well as Ginny's.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: nope … still don't own harry potter

_Disclaimer: nope … still don't own harry potter_

_A/N: I try to make pairings like these seem realistic, so if you don't like the Snape/Hermione pairing, I suggest you stop reading. There's just something about writing opposites attract fics. _

"**Professor Snape!" Ginny exclaimed, sure that her friend must be joking. Payback for not telling her about Draco. **

"**Would you keep your voice down?" Hermione warned, looking around them and moving further into Myrtle's bathroom. **

"**Professor Severus Snape? Potions Master Snape? THE Snape??" **

**Hermione sighed. "Apparently I should have kept this to myself."**

"**Oh, come on, Hermione, forgive me for being a little shell-shocked," Ginny replied, sitting on the counter by the sinks. **

"**Yes, well, as my friend, do you think you can get over the initial shock, and tell me what to do?" Hermione asked, desperate for advice. **

"**Well, I don't know…I mean, you still have a year before you're of age, so it would be bad if you two got together right now, but I'm sure once I've had time to process this all, I'll come up with something."**

**Hermione stared at her. **

"**What?"**

"**I don't want you to figure out how to get us together, I want you to help me deal with this and ignore it!" Hermione informed her.**

"**What? Why?" Ginny asked.**

**Hermione threw her hands into the air. "He's my teacher, Ginny! I can't have a relationship with him, I can't even begin to fathom the consequences of that!"**

"**Oh, come on, don't be such a prude, Hermione."**

**Hermione raised her eyebrows. "A prude? He's a teacher. I'm a student. It's against the law. In BOTH Wizarding and Muggle worlds. I'm not a prude, and I'm also not a criminal, nor am I jailbait."**

"**Okay," Ginny said, arms in the air. "It was just a joke."**

**Hermione sighed. "Well, we need to be serious now."**

"**Right," Ginny said, nodding. Then she was struck with a sudden thought. "Oh, my god, does Ron know?"**

"**No, why would he?"**

"**Okay, good," Ginny said. **

**Hermione looked at her friend. "Why would it be a big deal if Ron knew?"**

**Ginny stared back at her. "You're kidding, right?"**

**Hermione shook her head. **

"**Oh my, he's completely in love with you, Hermione," Ginny informed her. "Has been for years. You really didn't know?"**

**Hermione shook her head again, flabbergasted. **

"**Okay, well, that's a problem for another day," Ginny said, patting her friend on the shoulder.**

"**Right, now we have to figure out how I get over Professor Snape."**

**Ginny sighed again. "Do we really have to? I mean, I'm sure I can find a way for you to be together, without the teacher/student thing getting in the way. I mean, I was with Draco for weeks, and you guys had no idea."**

**Hermione shook her head. "No, Ginny. I don't want to pursue a relationship with him. I just want to get past this. Promise me you'll let this drop?"**

**Ginny nodded her head, but with a devilish, internal chuckle, she crossed her fingers inside her robe. **


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

_Chapter Three. _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, but it would be effing sweet if I did. _

_This chapter is hopefully going to be longer than the other two, and will have some Ron jealousy, woo hoo!_

_Anyway, as always, please read and review!_

_..._

**Hermione had hoped she would feel better after talking with Ginny, but she didn't. In fact, she felt more nervous, now knowing what she had told her about Ron, and his feelings for her, and the fact that Ginny had her heart set on seeing Hermione and Professor Snape together. **

**Hermione sat in the farthest corner of the library she could find, and sat with her head in her hands. "What am I going to do?" she wondered to herself. **

**"About what?" Ron asked, and Hermione looked up shocked. **

**"Oh, um, just this Ancient Runes assignment. Crookshanks got into my rucksack and tore everything up," Hermione lied. **

**Ron shook his head, sitting down beside her. "I told you that cat was trouble."**

**Hermione glared at him, while still feeling guilty about lying to him. "It's not like he set out to ruin my assignment, Ronald. It just happened."**

**"I'm sorry," he said earnestly, and Hermione anger quickly washed away. **

**She looked at her friend, someone she had known for almost seven years, and tried to see what he saw in her. The first time he'd met her, he'd made her of her, said she was a nightmare who had no friends. As the years went by, she'd gone from being an insufferable know-it-all, to someone helped him with his homework, and was his last resort to a date for the Yule Ball. She'd never really felt like he saw something in her, and she'd never thought about him that way.**

**Looking at him now, she didn't think she ever would. They were friends, more like siblings. **

**"What?" Ron asked, snapping her out of her thoughts. **

**"Oh, nothing," she said, running her fingers through her hair nonchalantly. **

**...**

**"Okay, so you're perfectly clear on the plan?" Ginny asked her friend. **

**"Yes, I know exactly what to do," Luna replied, the same dreamy look in her eyes as ever. **

**Ginny smiled, practically rubbing her hands together with an evil cackle. "Do you need to know why you're doing this?"**

**Luna shook her head, and started skipping down the hallway. **

**Strong arms came around Ginny's waist from behind her, and Ginny didn't need to look to see who it was. **

**"Hello there," she said, leaning her head back and kissing him. **

**"Having fun, I see," Draco said, leaning his head onto her shoulder. **

**"As always."**

**...**

**The Potions lab was excruciatingly hot, and Hermione had to work to ignore the sweat trickling down her back. Partnered with Harry, as usual, Hermione had taken the reigns on this potion. **

**"Harry, we're gonna need the some more armadillo bile from the storage closet," Hermione told him, adding the rest of what she had with her. **

**Hermione finished stirring and was waiting for Harry to return with the rest of the ingredients, when suddenly her potion caught fire. Hermione stared, dumbstruck for a few seconds, not understanding how it could have happened. She had barely reached for her wand when the flames were suddenly extinguished. **

**Hermione turned to see a rather harried looking Snape glaring murder at her. **

**"I have to admit, I am surprised at your utter stupidity, Granger," he snarled. "Were you planning on burning down the entire lab?"**

**"What? No, I ..."**

**Harry came back from the storage room and Snape turned on him. "I might have expected this from you Potter, but now you've rubbed off on another unsuspecting Gryffindor." Turning back towards Hermione, he said, "You've just bought yourself a week of detention, and 20 points from Gryffindor."**

**Hermione hung her head, not understanding what had gone wrong, and missed Luna casually slipping her wand back inside her robes. **

**...**

**Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat in the common room, the two boys comforting a crying Hermione. **

**"I don't understand what happened," she told them, dabbing at her tears. "I put all the ingredients in right, I followed the instructions ... that fire shouldn't have happened."**

**"You know, I wouldn't be surprised if Snape set that fire, just an excuse to make you look bad, and take points away from Gryffindor," Ron said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. **

**Hermione looked up at him, shocked. "Oh, please, Ronald, Snape wouldn't do that, no matter what you think of him." She shook herself out of his grasp, feeling more uncomfortable, and less sad. At least the tears had stopped for now. **

**"Why are you always standing up for him?" Ron asked bitterly. **

**Hermione rolled her eyes. "Maybe because he's not the bad guy you make him out to be, Ronald. He's a strict teacher, and yes he plays favorites with the rest of the Slytherins, but he doesn't go around setting cauldrons on fire, just to take away points from Gryffindor!"**

**Harry looked back and forth between Ron and Hermione. They'd fought before, but never with this much fire in their eyes. **

**"You know, I have never understood your fascination with him, Hermione," Ron spoke loudly. **

**"You've never understood much of anything when it comes to me, have you?"**

**Ron stared at her, neither one of them noticing the crowd that had gather in the common room. **

**Hermione glared at him icily. "You don't want me to get into that, Ronald. You want to walk away right now, and cool off," she warned him. **

**Ron shook his head. "No, I think I want to hear what you have to say."**

**Ginny stood near the front of the crowd and almost winced. **_**No, Ron, you don't**_**, she thought. **

**Hermione practically smirked. "I never loved you, Ron. I've never even liked you as more than a friend. And if you think for a second that treating a girl like complete and utter Hippogriff crap is going to get you anywhere, you are sorely mistaken. I have put up with a lot of crap from you, and so much of it is directed at the fact that I can appreciate intelligence. Professor Snape is a brilliant man, and that's just it, Ronald. He's a man. A silly boy like you could never understand a brilliant mind like his, or the thrall that draws others to it."**

**Everyone in the room was silent, the only sound that could be heard was Neville gulping and tripping over Crookshanks. **

**Hermione glared at Ron for a few more seconds before turning and pushing past the gawking viewers and rushing up the stairs to the girls' dormitory. **

**Ginny followed her, leaving Harry to console Ron. **

**...**

**Ginny opened the door slowly, finding Hermione sitting on her bed, shaking slightly. **

**"Are you okay?" **

**Hermione looked up at her friend. "Actually, I've never felt better."**

**Ginny smiled slightly, sitting down on Hermione's bed. **

**"Can you believe he actually had the nerve to say that Snape caused that fire?" Hermione asked. **

**Ginny sighed. "He never has been all that bright," she said. **

**"Anyway, you know this is going to be all over the school tomorrow, everything you said about Snape?"**

**Hermione laughed. "Right now, I don't care. I'm going to have to be in detention with him for a week, and when that's done, I'm sure Ron will have gotten over this and we can talk like civilized human beings."**

**Ginny nodded. "I hope so too." She waited a few seconds, and then changed the subject. "So, you and Snape, alone after hours, for a whole week?"**

**Hermione looked at her friend wiggling her eyebrows. "Oh, shut up!"**

**...**

_A/N: Again, sorry for the long wait, but finally an update. Hope you liked the chapter, and feedback, as always is wanted and appreciated._

_Until next time..._


	4. Chapter 4

...

Chapter Four.

...

Disclaimer: I still don't own Harry Potter, just bought some books and got addicted.

...

A/N: Sorry for the long wait, but it's finally being updated, so without a lot a boring talk from me, let's get on with the story. As always, please read and review, feedback is what I live for.

...

**All night, Hermione lay in her bed, fidgeting, tossing and turning. **_**Ginny had a point : an entire week of being alone with Severus Snape after hours. After dark ... **_**the thought alone sent shivers up her spine. She tried to convince herself that getting detention was a bad thing ... that she should feel bad for what happened. **

_**Although, looking back ... I still don't know what happened. The potion was doing fine, I did everything right, it just shouldn't have happened.**_

**Sighing, she rolled over again, looking at the pictures of her friends on the wall beside her bed. Her, Ginny and Luna sitting by the lake during their lunch break; Harry flying around on his firebolt; she, Harry, Ron and Hagrid having lunch in his hut. **

**Looking at Ron choking on a "cookie", Hermione sighed. She hadn't meant to throw all those things in Ron's face, but she also knew that it had to come out sometime, and it would be better for them to be in a "fight", than for him to think that they had a shot at a relationship. **

_**Oy, life is complicated. Here I am, fantasizing about a man who I can't be with, and then turning away one of my best friends, who happens to also be in love with me ... wow, detention is just going to be fabulous. Of course it will be all over the school tomorrow what I said about Snape's intelligence being "enthralling", me being "drawn" to him. He is going to make detention unbearable...**_

**...**

**Hermione had never suffered through such a agonizingly long day. She felt every minute, could almost hear the ticking of the non-existent clock counting down the hours to her doom. **

**As she had expected, the fight she'd had with Ron last night had spread to the entire school, already sides were being chosen, and Hermione was surprised to see a number of Slytherins smiling at her in the halls, one boy patted her on the shoulder as he walked by her in the Great Hall, and a couple of girls gave her friendly waves as she made her way to Ancient Runes. She suspected that Draco Malfoy had something to do with this, but didn't want to confront him about something so trivial ... what a scene it would make for her to get mad at someone for other people being nice to her... **

**Ron had ignored her all day, and Hermione had given Harry permission to take Ron's side and she almost saw the reluctance in his eyes, but he played the role of the dutiful best friend perfectly. **

**Now, standing at the door to the dungeons, Hermione suddenly wished she could go another round with Ron, instead of walking into the death-chamber before her. **

**Taking a deep, calming breath, as her mother taught her to do when she was little, Hermione placed on hand on the door in front of her and pushed it open. **

**"You're late."**

**Hermione nearly jumped out of her skin.**

**Clapping a hand to her mouth to stop herself from shrieking, she turned to see the dark-haired professor standing behind her. **

**She attempted to speak, but found her nerves were working overtime, and couldn't quite make sounds of a normal pitch. **

**"A bit jumpy, are we, Miss Granger?" he said, a hint of teasing in his voice that she'd never heard before.**

**She cleared her throat. "I've just, uh, never had, um, detention before, Professor."**

**"Yes, that is painfully obvious. Do take a seat, Miss Granger," he said, and motioned for her to sit on a chair placed in the middle of the now empty room.**

**She thought about saying **_**can I pick?**_** but deciding that being a smart-ass would not help her current situation, she changed her mind and moved to the chair, setting her bag underneath it before sitting down. **

**Snape moved in front of her, staring down his long nose and past his curtain of black hair to fix his steely gaze on her. She wanted to squirm, but was able to control herself ... **_**for now.**_

**"Now, as this is your **_**very first **_**detention, a letter won't need to be sent to your parents at this time," he said.**

**She let out a sigh of relief. **

**"However," he continued, "If you fail to meet my expectations of you this week, your detention will extend into another week, your parents will then be contacted, and more points will be taken from your house. Is that understood?"**

**Hermione nodded quietly, looking every bit the scared school girl that she was. **

**Snape smirked and folded his arms across his chest. "Your detentions will last exactly two hours. You will have no free time to do as you please during these two hours, if you have finished what I have set out for you to do, you will come find me and ask for a new assignment. Is this understood?"**

**She nodded again.**

**"For today you will be completing the assignment you failed to complete yesterday. You should have more than enough time to complete this assignment, and since you are at the "top" of the class, once you are finished you will complete a 300-word essay on what "not-to-do" in my class. Is this understood?"**

**Hermione was now becoming annoyed, but once more she nodded her head. She couldn't afford to cause more trouble with her Potions professor.**

**"Well, then, get to work, Miss Granger. You were 5 minutes late for detention, you will stay an additional 10 and clean the floors when you are done. By mop, not wand."**

**Hermione groaned internally at that, but nodded her head one last time before setting up her equipment.**

**Snape walked to his desk at the front of the classroom, hiding a smirk behind his hair the entire time. **

_**Would it have been more fun to ask her why Miss Lovegood set her potion on fire? Nah. Let her sweat.**_

**...**

Okay, end chapter four.

Again, sorry for the delay. But, here it is, so please review and tell me what you think!


	5. Chapter 5

_..._

_A Snape/Hermione fic, if you don't like the pairing, don't read it. _

_Chapter Five._

_..._

_Disclaimer: I wish I owned Harry Potter, instead of just a few books. _

_..._

_A/N: Sorry for the long wait again, but I've been busy with my other fics. But, at last, the next update. _

_Thanks for all the comments so far, as always, please read and review, I live for feedback!._

...

Hermione made it out alive, much to her surprise, and made her way back to the dorm, with Snape escorting her, of course. After all, students weren't allowed out of bed, and as much as he'd love to let some other unsuspecting teacher take points from Gryffindor and give her detention, he wanted this _pleasure_ all to himself.

Hermione's hand was sore from the quick writing she'd had to do for the "300-word essay on what not-to-do in his class", but she refrained from performing a muscle relaxing spell until she got back to her room.

They stopped at the portrait of the Fat Lady, and Snape nodded curtly to Hermione.

"Be on time tomorrow, Miss Granger," Snape said before walking away.

Hermione stuck her tongue out at him behind his back, and turned away, missing the smirk on his face.

She rattled off the password, and the Fat Lady sleepily opened the doorway leading to the common room.

She was making her way up the stairs when a voice from behind her stopped her.

"Did you have fun tonight?"

Taking a deep breath, Hermione turned to see Ron standing behind her, still in his day clothes.

"Go to bed, Ronald."

He snickered at that. "You aren't the boss of me."

Hermione crossed her arms over her chest. "Well, clearly you need one, because I have never seen someone so immature."

Ron scoffed at that.

"You know what, I've had a long night, I'm tired, and I'm going to bed," she informed him, walking up the stairs to the girl's dormitory, but Ron followed, and he hadn't gotten more than three steps up before the stairs turned into a ramp, and down they both went.

"You idiot!" Hermione shrieked, holding her leg in pain.

"It's not like I meant to do that," he said, standing up and holding out his hand.

"I'm fine," she insisted, trying to stand up, but finding she could only put weight on one leg.

"Oh yeah, you look fine," Ron said sarcastically.

"God, could you be more of an asshole? You broke my leg, and now you're being sarcastic?" Hermione snipped.

"And if you weren't so stubborn, I'd be helping you to the infirmary by now," Ron said, grabbing her arm and hauling her up.

"Owww! Dammit, Ron, would you stop it?" she cried out from the pain in her leg.

"Quit complaining and just work with me here," he snapped back, moving her out of the common room.

Hermione was struggling the entire way, but as Ron had a grip on one of her arms, and she had a broken leg, she wasn't putting up much of a struggle.

"What is going on here?" came a thick voice from behind them.

Hermione couldn't help but feel a bit relieved as Snape stepped out of the shadows.

Ron felt her release of breath, and practically growled, letting go of her and causing her to drop to the floor.

"Well, of course, now that your knight in dark armor is here, you won't be needing any more of my help," he said icily.

"I never wanted your help in the first place, you son of a bitch," Hermione retorted, trying in vain to stand up.

He held in a gasp of shock and contentment as Snape's surprisingly gentle hand grabbed hers, and his other moved around her waist, helping her stand.

She leaned a tentative hand against his shoulder and glared at Ron.

He shook his head in anger and stormed away, and Hermione instantly let go of Snape's shoulder, trying to stand on one leg.

Snape raised his wand to cast a spell, but Hermione put her hand up.

"I can walk there," she said, knowing she would be beyond embarrassed for him to levitate her all the way to the infirmary.

"Gryffindor's are notorious for being too stubborn for their own good," Snape said, taking her arm and wrapping it around his shoulders, and the two made their way to the infirmary in silence.

...

"So, how was it?" Ginny asked her the next morning at breakfast.

They sat a fair distance away from the rest of the Gryffindors so they wouldn't be overheard.

"Which part? The excrutiatingly long detention, the awkward walk back, Ron breaking my leg, or Snape having to practically carrry me to the Infirmary?"

Ginny thought for a moment and then said, "Snape carrying you to the Infirmary."

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Oh, come on, give me the goods!" Ginny whined, raising her voice slightly.

"Alright, alright," Hermione said, shushing her friend. "It was tolerable, the detention, and then the walk back to the portrait was a bit awkwards, but kinda nice, too, you know?"

Ginny nodded enthusiatically.

"So then, I get back to the common room, about to go upstairs, and Ron is making this big fuss, and basically just trying to annoy the crap out of me, and then he tries to follow me up the steps to the girl's dormitory, and the second he's on the stairs, it turns into a slide, and down we go, and I broke my leg, and then he's just standing there being an asshole, and being sarcastic, and practically forcing me along to the infirmary, and then Snape shows up, and Ron's acting like a total ass and just leaves me there on the ground, so Snape ..."

"What?" Ginny asked, leaning forward even more.

"Well, he was going to levitate me to the Infirmary, but that would have just been too humiliating for words, so I said I could walk the way there, and then he just pulls my arm around his shoulder, and walks me like that the whole way there."

Ginny smiled. "So then what happened? Did he just leave?"

Hermione let a small grin grace her features.

"What?" Ginny repeated.

"Well, no, he stayed until Madam Pomfrey fixed my leg, and then walked me back to the dormitory, but this time he came inside with me, and waited until I was all the way up the stairs to my dormitory before he left," Hermione told her friend.

"Did Ron see him come back with you?" Ginny asked.

"Um ... maybe, why?" she wondered.

Ginny shrugged. "'Cause he's been glaring daggers at Snape ever since he sat down."

Hermione peered down the table at Ron and Harry, and saw that in fact, Ron was paying more attention to Snape than he was his own food.

Hermione sighed. "I'm starting to think this friendship with Ron isn't even salvageable anymore."

Ginny nodded.

"He's my brother and I love him, but he is a total puts."

Hermione nodded, and looked towards the Teacher's table to sneak a look at Snape, and almost looked away again as she saw he was looking at her too. But something in his eyes caused her to keep her gaze, and they stayed like that for a few moments.

Ginny looked between the two and hid a smirk.

_Everything is exactly on schedule._

...

_Okay, end of chapter five._

_What did you think? _

_Feedback is loved. _


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